Upcoming Exchange Semester - Experience or prestigious Universities?

Hi guys,

In the not so distant future I will have to decide to which universities I want to go during my two semesters abroad.

People at my University went to excellent and presitgious universities such as Harvard, HEC or Cass - others went to Barbados or Australia. Btw, it is mandatory to engage in a part-time internship in one of the countries.

So: concerning the CV, how important is it to go to potential target unis - or prestigious universities.

Thanks

p.s. Talking about the undergraduate programm (obviously)

 

Don't think so. More a conversation piece but won't have an impact.

"They are all former investment bankers that were laid off in the economic collapse that Nancy Pelosi caused. They have no marketable skills, but by God they work hard."
 

For Finance they are all bad choices, and between the two UMASS options Amherst is the flagship campus.

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At NYU you get pretty much full on campus recruiting opportunities. So you can apply for both full time and internships. Keep in mind that the process is very structured though. Whether the employers will through your application in the trash once they see that you are just a visiting student, I can't tell you.

I wouldn't bank on finding a job that way. For recruiting later on, it helps for sure, as american employers "understand" us schools and will think positively when they see NYU/Wharton on the resume.

 

I realize that it doesn't make much difference but i would like to attend a good school when i'm in the US. I have been in San Francisco and New York (Ithaca). Maybe North Carolina and Duke then? Not sure what i want to do when i'm not studying and i don't have the geographical knowledge to know where i want to be.

 

It depends what you're trying to do. Berkeley would be good if you need contacts around the West Coast, Cornell for easier NYC trips. It doesn't make a huge difference. You could also reach out to alumni from the schools later on, so Berkeley, Duke & Cornell would all have real value to you (though both Berkeley and Cornell are heavy in Engineering as well, so that could sway you if you're interested in tech or not - I don't know enough about Duke to comment).

 

Where are you from?

Being European myself, I would say that out of those three, Berkeley has probably the best network (Haas and other professional schools), followed by Cornell. Duke is not very well known. and I don't think it has a large network either in Europe (I have never ever met anyone there who had studied at Duke).

From what I saw with my Asian friends, I would say it is pretty similar, probably more weighted towards Cornell which seems to be particularly strong in Asia.

 

I'm from Sweden and i'm i want to pursue a career in finance.

My toughts were that a well known school name on my resume and an "ok" network could be some of the benefits from picking one of the better schools in our exchange program. As you say it probably doesn't make much of a difference, but i find it hard to believe that it's not of some value vs. a vacation school in Australia or Brazil. I would like to study with other ambitious students and to experience a good/great school.

Thanks for your time. I really do appreciate it.

 
Best Response

Honestly, exchange programs are more for drinking and hanging out than for building the resume. If you're not satisfied with your school, I'd look to transfer, not do a semester abroad. You're not getting access to OCR, and it's not like the school brand really boosts the resume (tons of kids in the States study abroad at Cambridge and stuff, and everyone knows if you have the money, it's easy to go). Maybe you could intern or something, but that's something you'll get on your own, not through your school. And if that's what you're going for, why study abroad in the first place?

With all this in mind, I'd suggest Duke or UCLA, since they're sunny and the girls are great. Cornell is in a shithole of a location, and Berkeley has a hideous student body and difficult classes.

Again, if you think your school is holding back your career, you have the right idea in looking for other options. But TRANSFER. Studying abroad isn't going to transform your career prospects.

 

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